Tube cleaner



Nov. 29, 1938.

P. T. KEEBLER TUBE CLEANER Filed Aug. 7, 1954 2 She ets-Sheet l Nov. 29, 1938.

. P. T. KEEBLER TUBE CLEANER Filed Aug. 7, 1934 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR Patented Nov. 29, 1938 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE TUBE CLEANER.

of Pennsylvania.

Application August '7, 1934, Serial N0. 738,807

4 Claims.

Myinvention relates to motor-driven cleaner heads which are moved through tubes to clean out the deposits in the interior thereof, and the object is to improve such apparatus, particularly 5. as to length of life, ease of manufacture and assembly, and economy and flexibility for various different purposes.

Figure 1 is a sectional side elevation showing one form of my invention;

Figure 2 is a section on the broken line 22 of Figure 1, looking toward the left;

Figure 3 is a section onthe line III-III of Figure 1 looking toward the right;

Figure 4 is a side elevation of the head cage with the rear head and cleaners removed;

Figure 5 is a rear view of Figure 4;

Figure 6 is an interior view of the removable cage head;

Figures 7 and 8 are interior plan views of removable shaft plates;

Figure 9 is a broken plan view of another type of removable head plate;

Figures 10, 11 and 12 are broken detail views showing different forms and arrangements of the cleaner shafts and disks;

Figure 13 is a section on the line XIII-X[II of Figure 1, looking toward the left; and

Figure 14 is a section on the line XIV-JHV of Figure 12.

30 In the drawings, which show a preferred form of my invention, the cleaner head comprises a one-piece integral cage having a front head 2 and three integral arms 3, extending rearwardly therefrom and connecting the front head to a 35 rear spider 4. The arms 3 are shown as having wider forward portions and narrower rear portions where they join the spider 4.

Within the cage, formed preferably from one piece of metal, is located a three-armed bearing plate 5, which preferably is inserted between the arms 3 and then turned to fit against the rear of the front head, its three arms fitting between the enlarged forward portions of the arms 3. In each arm is a bearing hole or slot for the shafts carry- 45 ing the cutter wheels. In Figure 7, these are shown as circular recesses 6, while in Figures 1, 3 and 8, I have shown radially elongated holes or recesses 1 in a bearing plate The holes or recesses are larger than the ends of the shafts or 5 pins to allow considerable free movement of the shafts or pins. In both cases, they extend from the inner face toward the outer face, but not entirely through the plate. The three bearing arms of this plate are preferably of such length that they extend slightly beyond the periphery of the head of the cage so that blows on the front portion of the head are taken on the ends of these bearing arms.

The rear spider 4 has a central hub 8, provided 0 with an internally threaded hole therethrough to receive the screw-threaded stub shaft 9, by which the head: is driven. The rear head ll) of the cage is. removable, has a central hole closing the hub, and is provided on its inner face with segmental projections. II which fit the corresponding faces 5 of the spider legs, and each of which contains a slot l2, having an. open inner end. These slots are not radial and are each at an acute angle to a radius. These non-radial slots tend to cause self-feeding of the head, due to their action on the shafts or pins I3 as such pins move out under centrifugal force. In such relation and whether on removable plates or not, they constitute the joint invention of John R. McDermet and myself disclosed and claimed in application Serial No. 62,280 filed February 4, 1936, and hence are not claimed herein.

Each of the shafts l3 carrying the cutters l4 and l5has slightly tapered ends which rest in the bearings of the removable head and the removable bearing plate, respectively, of the cage. Where theremovable bearing plate of Figure '7 is used, the slightly conical end of the front ends of the shaft rocks within the larger hole 6 of the front bearing plate 5, its conical rear end moving back and forth within the slots l2 of the rear head. Where the front bearing plate has elongated holes, as in Figure 8, the shafts will slide back and forth within their bearing slots at each end, as shown in Figure 11.

Instead of providing bearings at each end of these shafts, an intermediate bearing and guide may be provided, as shown in Figure 12. In this case, the bearing plate It, shown in Figure 9, is located between the front cutter wheel 15 and the rear disk cutters I4. Here, there is no front bearing plate, but only the intermediate bearing plate and therearbea-rings in the rear head.

In this case, I show the shaft l3 as having an enlarged rear portion I3 located between the slot 40 in the bearing plate l6 and the rear parts 8 and II]. This enlargement of the shaft'is sufficient to prevent it from sliding forward so as to drop the cutter Wheels if the portion of the front spider 2 facing the shaft I3 shouldwear away from pin thrust. It will be understood that the slot in IE is narrower in the other direction than that shown in Figure 2 so that the shaft shoulder abutting on the sides of the slot would stop any such forward movement of the shaft. The longer con- 5 ical cutting wheels are preferably at the front, although the cutter wheels are arranged in any desirable manner on the shafts. They are preferably quite loose on the shafts so that they rotate easily under the vibration during the high speed rotation of the head.

These heads are subjected to very severe wear as they are driven at high speed and are subjected to an enormous succession of heavy blows as the shafts move with a rocking or sliding action and 0 loosen the scale, baked carbon or other material to be removed from the interior of the tubes. Consequently, there is a great advantage in using removable bearing plates or heads which can be removed and renewed. When the slots or holes are worn through to the outside or partly through, they may be quickly and easily replaced whenever desired, while using the same cage. The shafts and cutter wheels may, of course, be renewed as often as desirable.

In using the heads, they are usually connected by a flexible coupling or universal joint to the rotor of a rotary motor such as shown at I! in Fig ure 1. This may be a rotary blade, high speed air motor, of which exhausts are shown at l8, these being directed forwardly. Such motors drive forwardly with the exhaust and emit more or less oil spray used in lubricating the motor, and I have found that by using a certain type of flexible coupling, I can oil the coupling also by this oil spray from the motor.

In the form shown, the flexible coupling consists of an externally cylindrical sleeve l9 having a rear circular opening 20 and an internally square shaped forward portion 2| with an inclined or concaved inner face 22 at its corners around hole 20. Against these concaved corner portions fits the forward convexed face of a nut-shaped member 23, of which both faces are preferably chamfered or convex. This member is shown as square and may be of any angular shape, but is preferably sufficiently smaller than the recess of the exterior member to be fairly loose therein. It is provided with a central screw-threaded hole 24, and the rear portion of this nut is preferably extended, as shown at 25, in order to get a longer threaded hole for receiving the front screwthreaded portion 26 of the rotary exterior shaft.

In order to accentuate the striking action of the head, I may provide a slight eccentricity-such as {gig of an inch or so-between the nut shaft member 23 and the shaft portion 26. This is illustrated in Figure 13 by the parallel dotted lines showing the spaced apart centers of the two circles. This slight offset will produce a slight unbalance which will effect faster and better cleaning. This and the other'screw joints are, of course, assembled so that the driving parts tighten themselves in operation, as the rotation is always in the same direction. This eccentricity may or may not be used, but I prefer to employ it in many cases. The forward internally threaded portion 21 of the coupling receives the externally threaded rear portion of connecting member 28, having the externally threaded shaft portion 9, screwing into the cleaner head.

The advantages of my invention will be apparent to those skilled in the art, since, under the severe conditions of modern tube cleaners, especially in removing baked carbon from tubes and parts of cracking stills, the life of the tool is lengthened and the cost of heads reduced. The removable bearing-plates or heads may be slipped into place when others are Worn out and the shafts and wheels may be changed as often as desired. The' particular coupling shown is of advantage in allowing the oil spray from the motor to enter it, and thus keep it in good condition. It is simple, rugged and strong. It will be understood that the shafts may either slide in or out or swing from one end or have any other motion desired.

Many changes may be made in the form and arrangement of the parts; the head cage may be made up of parts welded or otherwise secured together; any motor may be used, and other changes may be made without departing from my invention.

I claim:

1. A rotary tube cleaner head having a supporting cage, a plurality of longitudinally-extending shafts having cleaning elements operably mounted thereon, a plurality of bearing elements removably secured with respect to the cage and having outwardly-extending slotted portions, said slotted portions having therein all the bearing surfaces engaged by the shafts in their radial movement under centrifugal force, there being at least a pair of said removable bearing elements associated with each of said shafts, stop means associated with said shafts for limitingthe extent of radial outward movement of said shafts with respect to said slotted portions, and means cooperating with said shafts to limit endwise movement of said shafts with respect to the head.

2. A rotary tube cleaner head having a supporting cage, a plurality of longitudinally-extending outwardly and inwardly movable shafts having cleaning elements operably mounted thereon, a plurality of removable bearing elements mounted in said cage and having bearing surface portions engaged by said shafts in their movement, there being at least a pair of said removable elements associated with each of said shafts, a bearing element of a pair having bearing surface portions with outwardly-elongated opening portions, said elongated bearing surface portions having all the bearing surfaces engaged by its portions of said shafts in their in and out movements, said element having stops to restrain the outward movement of said shafts.

3. A rotary tube cleaner head having a supporting cage, a plurality of longitudinally-extending shafts having cleaning elements operably mounted thereon, a plurality of bearing elements removably secured in said cage and having bearing surface portions, at least one of said elements having bearing surface portions with outwardly elongated opening portions, said shafts being inwardly and outwardly movable in said elongated bearing surface portions under the centrifugal force of rotation, said bearing elements having all the bearing surfaces for the outward and inward movement of said shafts, and said elements also having stops to restrain the outward movement of said shafts.

4. A rotary tube cleaner head having a supporting cage, a plurality of longitudinally-extend ing shafts having cleaning elements operably mounted thereon, a plurality of bearing elements removably secured in-the cage and having bearing surface portions, at least one of said elements having bearing surface portions with outwardly elongated opening portions, said shafts being inwardly and outwardly movable in said elongated bearing surface portions under the centrifugal force of rotation, said bearing elements having all the bearing surfaces for the inward and outward movement of said shafts, and at least one of said elements having a closed bearing surface portion for a shaft end portion.

PAUL T. KEEBLER. 

